501 Critical Reading Questions

Critical Reading Questions

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476.
c. The passage is primarily concerned with describing beliefs
found among Florida fishermen. The passage does not, how-
ever, catalog (give a complete account of) their beliefs, in that it
only gives some examples. Although the author does close the
passage with a suggestion traditional beliefs may have some real
world benefits, the majority of the passage is not occupied with
this idea.
477.
b. The primary purpose of the passage is to educate readers about
the importance of good parenting in developing moral charac-
ter in children. Choices a, d, and e are too narrow. Choice c is
not supported by the passage.
478.
d. The author is using sentence in the sense of a conclusion reached
by a judge in a criminal trial. She is asserting that to conclude
that an eight-month-old baby is already destined for success or
failure is a harsh judgment on such a small child. Note that
choice e, is incorrect because punishment is the result of a sen-
tence, and does not make sense in this context.
479.
c. The author opens the paragraph with the assertion that love is
the cornerstone (foundation) of good parenting. The monkey
study, which indicates that the need for love supercedes the
need for food, is used to support that assertion.
480.
a. The passage clearly defines cold parents as withholding love
(lines 32–33). Aloof means reserved or removed in feeling.
Restrictive parenting is defined in the passage as setting limits
(lines 33–34). A disciplinarian is one who enforces order.
481.
e. Lines 44 and 54–55 link the ability to defer gratification with
self-discipline and self-control. Hence, children who are unable
to defer gratification are unlikely to succeed because they lack
self-discipline.
482.
e. The subject of this paragraph is parents balancing their needs
with those of their child. Teaching a child to sleep through the
night is an example of parents balancing their needs (for a full
night’s sleep) with the needs of their baby (to be picked up in
the middle of the night).
483.
c. The passage clearly states that many parents will come to good par-
enting techniques instinctually (lines 65–66), which indicates that
instincts are a good guide for parents. Also, line 24 states that
loving an infant comes naturally to most parents—something
that comes naturally is instinctual. None of the other choices is
supported by the passage.
484.
b. The passage clearly states that potlatch is a gift-giving ceremony.
The author explains that potlatch is a generic word for the cere-
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